With Fall just around the corner, I've been heavily engaged with planning and organizing for the beginning of a new "structured" year. I got some new (cheap) bookshelves up to construct a fun school supplies nook. I have a towering pile of exciting, handpicked resources to make up my hodgepodge curriculum plan for this year. I am really excited to share some of them with you all in the near future! I just put in my grove collaborative order for the month and stockpiled on fresh Mrs. Meyer's cleaning products for the season. Apple Cider and Mum scents- fall just begs for signature scented house products ;) And of course, I can't forget all my favorite children's book titles, perfect for autumn afternoon readings.
I set out a pile of books with fall colored, warm and inviting covers-hoping my books won't be able to pass them by without perusing them. Knowing my boys, that shouldn't be a problem ;) We have Apples to Oregon, Barnyard Dance, Thankful, Raccoons and Ripe Corn, About a Bear, Let it fall, Barnyard Baby, and last but not least, our newest addition- God gave us thankful hearts by Lisa Tawn Bergren. I own most of the beloved books in the God Gave Us series and even reviewed one of the other titles last year. These books are a real treasure on any child's bookshelf. They beautifully and lovingly explain major life events-such as a new sibling and holidays, like Christmas. This sweet title features a new family- Little Wolf Pup and his Mama and Papa, as they find all the many reasons to be thankful during the autumn days. I smiled as I cracked this book open and started to read of Little Pup and his dismay to find the "fun seasons" coming to an end and winter on it's way. My Oldest has been pining over the dwindling, last days of Summer and change coming soon. I think this will become one of our favorite reads of the season. I appreciate that this book isn't trite and condescending, telling children to "just be thankful, already." Lisa has done a wonderful job of empathizing with kids and those things that are important and also a challenge in their lives. The book takes many "cons" in Little Pup's life and shows how his parents help him find the "pros" out of those same things.
I liked the line Mama Wolf shares with Little Pup halfway through the book. "The trick to having a thankful heart," Mama said, "is thinking about the things that make us happy, rather than the things that don't." What a word of truth for all of us- big and little.
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